Reclinable chairs and seats

ABSTRACT

A simplified reclining mechanism, as for chairs and seating, is herein described. The reclining mechanism is an integral part of the frame members of the chair or seat. Thus, the reclining chair of this invention has a seat frame and a base frame (carrying a backrest). The base frame is pivotally mounted to the seat frame at or near the front thereof, and is adapted to move rearwardly with respect to the seat frame, under the influence of the weight of an occupant of the chair which causes moments of force to be exerted about the pivotal point of mounting resulting in the desired rearward movement. Means for limiting rearward movement of the backrest, with respect to the seat frame, is provided.

United States Patent Cortina O.

RECLINABLE CHAIRS AND SEATS Ignacio Cortina 0., Paseo de Las Palmas 765, Mexico 10, D.F., Mexico Filed: Feb. 26, 1973 Appl. No.: 335,788

Related U.S. Application Data Continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 229,447, Feb. 25, 1972, abandoned.

Inventor:

U.S. c1 297/294, 297/310, 297/325 Int. Cl. A47c 3/00 Field of Search 297/19, 291, 294, 2 95, 310,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,280,732 4/1942 Thum.... 2,763,319 9/1956 297/310 Wilson 297/288 Primary ExaminerJames C. Mitchell Attorney, Agent, or Firm-I. Morley Drucker [57] ABSTRACT A simplified reclining mechanism, as for chairs and seating, is herein described. The reclining mechanism is an integral part of the frame members of the chair or seat. Thus, the reclining chair of this invention has a seat frame and a base frame (carrying a backrest). The base frame is pivotally mounted to the seat frame at or near the front thereof, and is adapted to move rearwardly with respect to the seat frame, under the influence of the weight of an occupant of the chair which causes moments of force to be exerted about the pivotal point of mounting resulting in the desired rearward movement. Means for limiting rearward movement of the backrest, with respect to the seat frame, is provided,

22 Claims, 23 Drawing Figures FATENTEU MARI 1 I975 smal -0f 4 RECLINABLE CHAIRS AND SEATS CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation-in-part application of my patent application Ser. No. 229,447 entitled RECLINABLE CHAIRS AND SEATS" filed Feb. 25, 1972, and now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The instant invention relates particularly to reclining mechanisms for chairs and seating of both the indoor and outdoor type.

Prior to the instant invention, reclinable types of chairs were usually equipped with a joint located at the union of the seat with the back, thus permitting the back to be inclined rearwardly. However, this kind of mechanism is generally complicated and costly, consisting generally of an interlocking system composed of notches that permit the back to be placed in a certain number of positions, generally from four to eight, without it being possible to adopt a different angle if such is required. Prior reclinable armchairs, having a numher of positions for inclination, were equipped with a series of springs and counterweights which make them complex and of high cost, and in most cases, they are actuated with the help of a lever that breaks the harmony of lines of such piece of furniture.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A simplified reclining mechanism, as for chairs and seating, is herein described and claimed. The reclining mechanism is an integral part of the frame members of the chair orseat. Thus, the reclining chair of this invention has a seat frame and a base frame (carrying a backrest). The base frame is pivotally mounted to the seat frame at or near the front thereof, and is adapted to move rearwardly with respect to the seat frame, under the influence of the weight of an occupant of the chair which causes moments of force to be exerted about the pivotal point of mounting resulting in the desired rearward movement. Means for limiting rearward movement of the backrest, with respect to the seat frame, is provided.

Further, the seat frame is stably mounted, with respect to the floor, by any ofa number of means, so that as reclining of the backrest proceeds, stability of the chair is insured.

The chair or seating of this invention moves easily from rearward position to normal sitting position, under the influence of forward movement of the weight of the occupant, thus causing moments of force to be exerted about the pivotal point readily resulting in the desired forward movement of the chair or seating.

Other major advantages of the present invention lie in the provision of an optimum angle of curvature between the base frame member and its upwardly curving backrest member to insure a smooth reclining action, and in the optimum placement of a pivotal point between seat frame and base frame (carrying the backrest). Other objects and the nature and advantages of the instant invention will be apparent from the following description.

' BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of areclinable arm chair made in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view, taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the reclinable arm chair shown in FIG. 1 but with the upholstery removed to clearly show the frame members;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged exploded perspective view of the hinge means between the frame members shown in FIG. 3;

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 show, in side elevation, various positions of the reclining chair shown in FIG. 1 commencing with the non-reclined position (FIG. 5), the intermediate reclined position (FIG. 6) and the fully reclined position (FIG. 7);

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a frame only for another embodiment-of the reclining chair of my invention;

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of the chair shown in FIG. 8 shown in non-reclined position in full line and in partially reclined position in dotted line;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the hinging detail taken along the line 10-10 of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 11-11 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view of the hinging detail shown in FIGS. 10 and 11;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of still another embodiment of a frame only for a reclining chair of my invention;

FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of the frame shown in FIG. 13, shown in non-reclined position in full line, and in partially reclined position in dotted line;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line 1Sl5 of FIG. 13;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a frame only for a fourth embodiment of the reclining chair of my invention;

FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of the chair frame of FIG. 16, shown in non-reclined position in full line, and in partially reclined position in dotted line.

FIG. 18 is a side elevational view showing the frame members of a further embodiment of my invention;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the frame members of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is an enlarged perspective view of the hingin g mechanism shown in FIGS. 18 and 19;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of another embodiment of my invention showing the frame members thereof;

FIG. 22 is a side elevational view of still another embodiment of my invention shown in reclined position; and

FIG. 23 is a front elevational view of FIG. 22.

Referring now to the drawings, and especially to FIGS. l-7 thereof, one embodiment of a reclining arm chair 20 of my invention is there shown. The frame of the arm chair 20 comprises four basic members or elements two seat frame members 22, 22a and two base-backrest members 24, 24a. These basic members may be made of practically any material but presently preferred are wood, metal or plastic. The seat portion of the chair 20 is designated by the numeral 26, the arm rest portions by 27, 27a, and the back rest portions by numeral 28. The upholstery covering for each of the seat, arm and backrest may be greatly varied but generally comprises fabric, leather, vinyl or other plastic.

The seat frame members 22, 22a, as shown in FIGS. 1-7 are made of steel bar stock, run parallel to each other, and are located on the underside of, and support, the seat portion 26 of the chair 20. The seat frame members 22, 22a extend rearwardly and downwardly to the floor, at point 29, and these rearward portions of the seat frame members 22, 22a are designated by the numerals 23, 23a. The seat frame members 22, 220, are pivotally mounted to the base-backrest members 24, 24a at the front of, and generally below, the seating portion 26 ofthe chair 20, the pivot means being generally designated by the numeral 30, 30a. The basebackrest members 24, 24a, run generally parallel to each other and each of them, in side elevation, is formed commencing from the pivot means 30, 30a, in a generally vertically downward direction, extending nearly to the floor to form frontal portions 31, 31a, are then bent rearwardly therefrom to form floor support portions 32, 32a, and are then bent upwardly and rearwardly to form backrest portions 34, 34a.

It will thus be seen that four basic members comprising two seat frame members 22, 22a and two basebackrest members 24, 24a, when pivotally mounted at 30, 30a, form the basic framework for the reclining chair 20 of this invention.

The framework, thus formed is shown in perspective in FIG. 3. The detail of the pivot means 30a is shown in FIG. 4 and pivot means 30 is a duplicate thereof. To the front of seating frame member 22a is integrally formed (as by welding) a solid cylindrical pin 40a for rotatable interconnection with a mating sleeve 42a integrally affixed to the frontal portion 3la of basebackrest member 240. The rotatable interconnection between frame members 22, 22a and 24, 24a formed by the pin and sleeve pivot means 30, 30a at the front of the seating portion of the chair 20 allows the basebackrest members 24, 24a to be fully rotatable with respect to seat frame members 22, 22a.

The four basic frame members of the chair 22, 22a, 24, 24a can be held in parallel position by means of cross-braces 40, 40, 40", if desired, as shown in dotted line in FIG. 3, or the cross-bracing 40, 40, 40 can be eliminated completely when the cross-bracing is supplied by the framework or backing of the upholstery of the backrest 28 and seat portion 26, which limits rearward movement of backrest 28.

The framework of the upholstery is shown in crosssection in FIG. 2, and is designated by the numerals 44, 46 for the seat portion 26 and backrest 28, respectively. The frameork 44, 46 (usually made of wood), is attached to the chair frame members 22, 22a, 24a, by screws 47 or other conventional means. The upholstery material is affixed to the framework 44, 46 by conventional means.

The reclining operation of the chair 20 will now be described, with special reference to FIGS. -7.

As force is applied to the backrest 28, by the weight of the user of the chair, the backrest 28 moves rearwardly as shown in FIG. 6 because backrest frame members 34, 34a are completely free to move with respect to seat frame members 22, 22a until such time as brace 40 (in FIG. 3) or the underside 50 of upholstery 28 (in FIG. 2), abuts seat frame members 22, 22a. The abutment of the underside 50 of backrest 28 with 22, 22a is shown in FIG. 7. Means for limiting rearward movement of the backrest 28 is extremely important in this type of reclining structure. If no limiting. means were employed, such as those described, the reclining chair 20 may well be unstable in some situations. 7

If the backrest frame members 34, 34a were fixed to the seat frame members 22, 22a where these frames intersect (as viewed in profile see point F in FIG. 5), the backrest frame members 34, 34a can move rotatably clockwise about the point of pivot d and the main action of the chair would be a slight rocking action. Some reclining of backrest 28 would occur if the frame members 34, 340 were made of springy or flexible material and in this case, some flexure would be seen commencing from point F. But the main action would be only a slight rocking action, and the reclining action would be minimal.

It is also important to note, that the construction of this invention requires, for its success, not only backrest frame members 34, 34a moving independently of seat frame members 22, 22a giving rise to a moving point of intersection F (in profile see FIG. 5), but on either side of this moving point of intersection F there is preferably provided a floor support point or contact in all of its reclining positions. Thus, though point F, in FIG. 5, moves rearwardly to point F in FIG. 6, and further rearwardly to point F" in FIG. 7, these points of intersection lie between floor support contacts or points d, d, d" and m, m and m" of FIGS. 5-7, respectively, to insure the stability of the chair, as reclining proceeds from the position of FIG. 5 to the positions shown in FIGS. 6 to 7.

It is also possible to eliminate the rear floor support point m, m, m" if one is willing to anchor the pivotal front support points d, d, d" to the floor, while still allowing the pivotal movement of points a, d, d". But this arrangement is not presently preferred, as it restricts portability of the chair, requires anchoring screws or bolts to be attached to the floor.

It is also possible to eliminate rear floor support points 29 depending from the seat frame 22, 220 (as shown) by providing those support points, instead, by arm rests or other members which rest on the floor and are lateral extensions of the seat frame. Thus, if the arm rests 27, 27a of FIGS. 1 and 5 were extended to the floor, and also lengthened so that the rear thereof extended behind point F" (shown in FIG. 7), stability of the chair would still result. But this form of the invention is merely a specialized form of an example of the general concept that there should be floor support points provided by either of the frame members of the chair, or members attached to said frame members, which support points are located on either side of a moving point of intersection (F, F, F") of seat and backrest frame members, when viewed in profile to insure stability as reclining of the chair 20 proceeds. Please refer to FIGS. 22 and 23 for a showing of such a specialized form, the description of which is set forth hereinafter.

The normal non-reclined position of the chair 20 is shown in FIG. 5 and the fully reclined position is shown in FIG. 7, an intermediate reclined position being shown in FIG. 6. It will be noted that the base frame members 32, 32a, may extend along the floor for a substantial distance with respect to the seat portion depth (i.e., for at least 25 percent of the length of the depth of the seat portion 26). See especially FIG. 2 in this regard. These elongated floor support base frame members 32, 32a insure stability in the normal non-reclined position as shown in FIG. 5. The base frame members 32, 320 are smoothly curved, at the rear thereof, along a radius of curvature of between about 4 cm. to about 12 cm. and continue rearwardly and upwardly to form the backrest frame members 34, 34a. The angle B (see FIG. 5) formed by the backrest frame members 34, 34a with the floor may vary between about 95 and 135 in the normal non-reclined position of FIG. 5, but the optimum angle of angle B is between about 105 and 120.

Reference has been made previously to a rotatable'of hinge connection 30, 300 between frame members 22, 24, and 22a, 24a, respectively. This rotatable connection, as shown in the FIGS. l-7 embodiment of this invention, is located at the front of the chair just below the seat portion 26 thereof. The rotatable connection may assume anyone of a number of forms and one presently preferred form is shown in FIG. 4 and has been previously described.

It has been found that the relative ease of reclining in this embodiment of FIGS. 1-7 is greatly enhanced over the comparable configuration of chair having a rigid connection at 30, 30a. Thus, the reclining angle B of the backrest of the chair in FIG. 5 is about 112. In FIG. 7, the angle B" has been increased, by about 39, to 151 under the influence of the weight of the user. Because of the frontal rotatable connection 30, 30a, it is much easier to achieve this increased reclining angle. The weight of the occupant of the seat of the chair would normally prevent easy reclining as can be seen from opposed vector components of force V V set up by the weight W W" of the user. However, by hinging the seat and back frames at the front of the chair, the downward vector components Y' and Y" initiate moments of force which cause clockwise rotation of back frame members 34, 34a about connection 30,

30a (as viewed in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7) while vector components V and V" tend to cancel each other out. The result of the ability to use the moments of force in this fashion is a very easily reclinable chair to any intermediate position (as exemplified by FIG. 6) or to the fully reclined position of FIG. 7.

The reverse is also true. For example, when the user wishes to move from the position of either FIG. 7 to FIG. 6 or FIG. 5, he does so by forcing his weight to the front of the chair, causing counter clockwise rotation about rotatable connections 30, 30a (as viewed in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7) resulting in an easy return to a less reclined position.

It will also be seen that as the front of the seat portion 26 is raised from the FIG. 5 position to the FIG. 7 position, a rearward sliding movement of the rear base support point m occurs to m", the increase in rearward movement being the distance y and z, respectively. The rearward movement of the rear base support point is required because the front of the seat frame 22, 22a of the chair 20 is moving rearwardly during the reclining stages (see connection 30, for example, in FIGS. 5-7) and point m must therefore move rearwardly with the seat frame members 22, 22a. This rearward sliding movement is also facilitated by the rotatable connections 30, 30a and may also be facilitated, further, by providing rollers at point 29 (not shown).

From the foregoing analysis, it will be seen that the pivot point, or rotatable connections 30, 30a, between the seat frame members 22 and base-backrest members 24, 240, should preferably be located near the front of 6. the chair 20 in order that maximum moments of force may be applied to the pivot points 30,30a. However, the pivot point need not be located precisely at the front of the chair, and, in some configurations, it is sufficient to locate the pivot point in the forward half of the seat portion 26 of the chair 20.

Reference was earlier made herein to a specialized form of the embodiment of FIGS; 1-7 where. the rear support means is provided by arm rests or extensions thereof as for example, shown in FIGS. 22 and 23. Referring now to the chair 300 in FIGS. 22 and 23,-a seat frame member 301 carrying a cushion 302 is affixed to upholstered arm members 304 by conventional upholstery techniques (schematically shown only). A base member 308, preferably made of metal, is pivotally mounted to the seat member 301 by hinge means 306a, 306b (comparable to hinge means 400, 42a, of FIG. 4). Base member 308 has a downwardly directed frontal portion 308a and a rearwardly directed floor engaging portion 308b, which then curves upwardly at the rear thereof to form, or be affixed to, back support members 309. The upholstered backrest is affixed to back support members 309 and is designated by numeral 310.

Back support members 309 are thus pivotally mounted to seat member 301, 302, and will move rearwardly in the same manner as described with reference to FIGS. 1-7. The arm members 304, being attached to seat member 301, will move with the seat member 301. The curvature and configuration of base support 308 is much the same as that described with reference to the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment.

The lower edge 312 of the arm members 304 lie above the floor in the normal rest position of the chair 300. However, attached to, and between the rear of, the arm members 304 is an elongated roller 314, the periphery of roller 314 extending below the arm members 304 and engaging the floor. Roller 314 thus provides a continuous rear floor support for the chair 300, as it moves from a normal rest position to the reclining position of FIG. 22 and, in this respect, is comparable to rear floor support means 29 of the FIGS.'1-7 embodiment. It will be seen that there is a moving intersection point J between an imaginary line drawn between the rear of seat member 301 and floor support roller 314, on the one hand, (as viewed in FIG. 22), and the rearwardly movable backrest member 309, on the other hand. This intersection point, .1 always lies between floor support points 314 and the frontal pivotal area 316 of chair 300, and, in this respect, is comparable to the floor supports of FIGS. 1-7, (as moving intersection point F.

Referring now to FIGS. 8-12, another embodiment of a chair of my invention, designated generally by the numeral 60, is shown. The chair is made essentially of wood and has parallel seat frame members 62, 62a, braced by cross-braces 63 and by brace 65. The seat frame members 62, 62a have a shape similar to that of seat frame members 22, 22a, of FIGS. l-7, and are rotatably or pivotally connected to base-backrest members 64, 64a near the front of each of these members as will be described.

The base-backrest members 64, 64a are each formed with elongated base floor supports 66, 66a, each of which curve upwardly at the rear thereof into the backrest frame members 67, 67a. A cross-brace member 68 extends between, and braces, backrest frame members 67, 67a. Arm supports 70, 70a are formed by curving the base frame members 66, 66a upwardly at the front thereof and then curving them rearwardly until they join backrest frame members 67, 67a, respectively. The frontal frame members supporting the arm supports 70, 70a are designated by the numeral 72, 72a, respectively.

The pivotal connection of the base-backrest frame members 64, 64a to the seat frame member 62, 62a is substantially below the top edge of the arm supports 70, 70a of the base backrest member, and is designated generally by points P, P in FIG. 8.

The pivotal connections P, P are formed as follows: a cross-piece 74 has formed, at the ends thereof, laterally extending dowel pins 77. The cross-piece 74 is mounted to the underside of seat frame members 62, 620 by means of U-shaped brackets 80, which are mounted around dowel pins 77 by conventional wood screws 81. (See FIGS. -12). The dowel pins 77 are then inserted into corresponding cavities 79 formed in the frontal positions 72, 72a of the base members. Since the material of this chair is wood, one of the dowel pins 77 may be spring mounted for lateral movement (not shown) to facilitate engagement of the pin with its cavity. The seeat member 61 is thus pivotally mounted by dowels 77, at points P, P, with respect to the base-backrest frame members 64, 64a at the front of the chair 60. Suitable upholstery, fabric, webbing, and the like, may be added to complete the chair.

The reclining features of this wooden chair 60 are substantially the same as the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment except that there is very little flexibility in the backrest portions thereof due to the nature of the material of the frame.

The angulation of the backrest portions 64, 64a with respect to the fioor support portions 66, 66a is approximately the same as shown in the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment. The cross-brace 68 limits the rearward reclining movement ofthe chair 60, and stability is insured in the same manner as with the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment during the pivoting movement of the chair 60, about points P, P, to a reclining position. An intermediate reclining position of chair 60 is shown in dotted line in FIG. 9.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 13, 14 and 15, a chair 90 is shown, which is constructed of plastic. The basebackrest member 92 is formed from a unitary plastic sheet, and is curved to a shape that is quite similar in profile to that of the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment. It is formed with a small-diameter cylindrical sleeve or housing 94 partially extending across the top front edge thereof, through which is mounted laterally extending dowel pin 93 having free end portions. Seat member 96 is also formed with small-diameter cylindrical sleeves 97 at the front thereof, and seat member 96 is then pivotally mounted onto dowel pin 93 by means of the cooperating sleeves 97 to form a pair of frontal pivotal connections between seat member 96 and basebackrest member 92.

The seat member 96 has a pair of rearwardly extending base-support legs 98 extending through cut-outs 99 formed in the base-backrest member 92. The upper edges 100, of cutouts 99, limit rearward movement of the base-backrest member 92, before a point of instability is reached. The cut-outs 99 thereby act to limit the degree to which chair 90 can be reclined. An intermediate reclining position of chair 90 is shown in dotted line in FIG. 14. The reclining features and modifications enumerated with respect to FIGS. 1-7, are equally applicable with respect to the FIGS. 13-15 embodiment.

The chair 102 shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 is made of metal bar stock, e.g., chromed steel and in configuration is substantially the same as that shown in the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment except for one important difference. The backrest and seat frame members 104, 106 of the chair 102 are made in one piece, and cross-braced at the front thereof, and in the backrest position by crosspieces I08 and 107, respectively. Cross-pieces 107, 108 may be mounted to backrest member 104 by any conventional means.

It will be noted that the chair 102 is formed without any pivotal connection at the front thereof. The chair 102 is, however, an operative reclining chair because of a) the flexibility and springiness of the material utilized, b) because the angle between the floor and the backrest frame or portion 104, lies in the optimum range of lO5-120, in its normal non-reclined position, this angle also having an optimum radius of curvature of between about 4.12 cm. and 0) because the floor engaging portions 110, of base-backrest frame portion 104 is of substantial length with respect to the seat depth, i.e., over 25 percent. The noted degree of angulation, radius of curvature extended floor supports and material utilized are important to the production of proper, smooth, reclining in this embodiment.

The previous embodiments described (FIGS. l-7, 22, 23, 8-12 and 13-15) are preferred from the point of view of comfort and easy reclinability, for reasons already specified. However, it may be more economical to manufacture the embodiments of FIGS. 16-17 in some instances. It will also be noted that chair 102 still has great balance and stability. This balance and stability of the chair 102 is provided by means of the limitreclining cross-brace 108 in combination with the frontal floor engaging members 110 and rearward engaging floor supports 112. These floor support points 110 and 112 are always on either side of the points of intersection G, G of frame members 104, 10 6 (as viewed in profile in FIG. 17) as it moves from normal to reclining position. The limit reclining brace may be provided in other ways, as well.

Referring to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 18-20, a chair is there shown, the frame members of which are constructed of metal tubular material, which chair is especially available for outdoor use. Chair 160 has a seat frame member 152 and a base frame member 151 which, in plan, are each generally rectangular, and in side elevation, are curved or arched. The general configuration of members 151, 152 is similar to that of the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment herein, i.e., base frame member 151 has frontal portions 151 downwardly directed which portions 151 then are curved upwardly and rearwardly to form back rest portions 151b, the angle and radius of curvature being substantially the same as that of the FIGS. 1-7 embodiment.

The frontal portions 151' of base frame member 151 are joined by an integral transversely extending, tubular rod 153a, and the back rest members 151b are inteshown in FIGS. 18 and 19 wherein frontal horizontal member l53b is formed extending into vertical frontal members 152" and thence curving rearwardly and downwardly to a rear floor engaging member 152.

The base and seat frame members 151, 152 are hingedly mounted to each other at the frontal portions thereof by two pair of clips 154, each clip 154 having outside ears 156, joined together by screws or other suitable fastening means. A pair of joints, J, are thus formed about frontal members 153b, 153a, enabling the seat and frame members to be pivotally rotatable with respect to each other about the said frontal members 153b, 153a.

Seat frame member 152 is formed with a width a, which width is slightly narrower than the width b of base frame member 151 so that the backrest of base frame member 151 can be moved rearwardly with respect to seat frame member 152.

The rearward movement of the backrest portion of base member 151 is limited by transversely extending rod 151d, affixed between back rest side members lb.

Upholstery, or other seat support means is carried by the seat and base frame members 152, 151, as shown, for example, in dotted line in FIG. 18.

The reclining operation of the chair 160 is substantially the same as described with reference to the FIGS. l-7 embodiment and with special reference to FIGS. 5-7, even though the point of pivot of FIGS. 18-20 is substantially lower than in the FIGS. l-7 embodiment.

Many different types of pivotal connections of the base and seat frame members can obviously be utilized. In the FIG. 21 embodiment, for example, the base frame member 201 of chair 210 is pivotally mounted to seat frame member 202 by means of a pair of ball and socket type joints 204 which allows relative rotation of the two members 201, 202 to readily take place. The rear base support of chair 210 is designated by numeral 202'.

Various modifications of this invention will also be obvious to those skilled in the art. For example, the frame members, in top plan view, or in front elevation, need not be rectangular. Other aesthetic frame shapes may be employed, such as ovals, ellipses, truncated or complete triangles, and the like. Similarly, in side elevation, the variety of shapes of frame members may be extensive. Also, the seat frame may be wider than the base-backrest frame, or it may be narrower, as has been shown in the embodiments illustrated therein.

A limiting means for the backrest has been disclosed comprising cross-braces in the back support of the back frame, and also in other ways. Limiting means can also be obtained either by limiting the rotation of the frontal hinges, or by a brace or stop attached to the seat frame.

I intend therefore to be bound only by the claims which follow.

I claim:

1. A reclining structure for a chair or the like, which includes:

a base member having a frontal end and a rear end,

member being such as to allow a smooth pivoting action about the juncture of said base and backrest member to occur;

a seat member;

hinge connection means provided between said seat member and said base member near the frontal end of said base member, said seat member not being otherwise connected to said base member or backrest member, said hinge connection means providing a pivotal axis about which said seat member and said base member can rotate with respect to each other, and without restriction, under the influence of moments of force applied to said seat member and said backrest member by a person in'moving to a reclining position in said structure;

rear floor support means, for said seat member,

mounted to said seat member, but not to said backrest member, to permit rearward movement of said backrest member; and

means for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest member prior to reaching a point of instability of the structure.

2. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said base and backrest member and said seat member are each formed by a plurality of elements, and each of said plurality of elements carries support means for an occupant of said structure.

3. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said base and backrest member are made as a unitary member.

4. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein each of said base and backrest members comprise a framework of elements selected from the group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.

5. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member comprises a framework of elements selected from a group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.

6. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies between about and about 135.

7. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies optimally between about and about 8. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said radius of curvature lies between about 4 crruand about 9. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said rear floor support means.

10. The reclining structure of claim 9 wherein said rearwardly extending portion is formed by a pair of arm rests and a roller means affixed between said arm rests, engaging with said floor.

11. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said rear floor support means, a point of intersection between said rearwardly extending portion of said seat member and said backrest member being thereby formed, as viewed in side elevation, said point of intersection always lying between floor supports, as viewed in side elevation, regardless of the position of reclinement of said structure.

12. Reclining seating means, which includes:

a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted for contact with the floor in the normal unreclined position of said seating means; backrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, the angle formed between said base member and said backrest member being about 95 and about 135, and the angle of curvature between said base member and said backrest member permitting a smooth pivoting action at the juncture of said base and backrest member to occur;

a seat member mounted near said frontal end of said base member but not to said backrest member whereby said backrest member moves, pivotally, about said juncture of said base and backrest member under the moments of force applied to said seating means by a person moving to a reclining position therein, said seat member being provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form thereby a stable positioning of said seating means on said floor while permitting said pivoting action about said juncture of said base and backrest members to occur, said substantial elongated portion of said base member adapted for contact with the floor in the normal, unreclined, position of said seating means being at least 25 percent of the depth of said seat member for stability of said seating means in said normal, unreclined position; and

means for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest member prior to reaching a point of instability.

13. A reclining seating member, which includes:

a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted for elongated contact with the floor;

a backrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom to form a backrest for said chair, the angle and radius of curvature between said base member and said backrest member being such as to allow a smooth pivoting action at the juncture of said base and backrest members to occur,

a seat member pivotally mounted near said frontal end of said base member but not to said backrest member, said pivotal mounting permitting unrestricted rotational movement, whereby said backrest member moves relatively independently of said seat member, and pivots about said juncture of said base and backrest members, under the moments of force applied to said sealing means by a person moving to a reclining position therein;

means for stably positioning said seating means on said floor while permitting said unrestricted pivoting action about said juncture of said base and backrest members to occur; and

means, independent of said pivotal mounting, for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest prior to reaching a point of instability.

14. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said base and backrest member and said seat member are each formed by a plurality of elements, and each of said plurality of elements carries support means for an occupant of said structure. I

15. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said base and backrest member are made as a unitary member.

16. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein each of said base and backrest members comprise a framework of elements selected from the group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.

17. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said seat member comprises a framework of elements selected from a group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.

18. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies optimally between about and about 19. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said radius of curvature lies between about 4 cm. and about 20. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said means for stably positioning said structure on said floor.

21. The reclining structure of claim 20 wherein said rearwardly extending portion is formed by a pair of arm rests and said means for stably positioning said structure on said floor is a roller means affixed between said arm rests, engaging with said floor.

22. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said 

1. A reclining structure for a chair or the like, which includes: a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted to contact with the floor; a backrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, the radius of curvature, and angle, between said base member and said backrest member being such as to allow a smooth pivoting action about the juncture of said base and backrest member to occur; a seat member; hinge connection means provided between said seat member and said base member near the frontal end of said base member, said seat member not being otherwise connected to said base member or backrest member, said hinge connection means providing a pivotal axis about which said seat member and said base member can rotate with respect to each other, and without restriction, under the influence of moments of force applied to said seat member and said backrest member by a person in moving to a reclining position in said structure; rear floor support means, for said seat member, mounted to said seat member, but not to said backrest member, to permit rearward movement of said backrest member; and means for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest member prior to reaching a point of instability of the structure.
 1. A reclining structure for a chair or the like, which includes: a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted to contact with the floor; a backrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, the radius of curvature, and angle, between said base member and said backrest member being such as to allow a smooth pivoting action about the juncture of said base and backrest member to occur; a seat member; hinge connection means provided between said seat member and said base member near the frontal end of said base member, said seat member not being otherwise connected to said base member or backrest member, said hinge connection means providing a pivotal axis about which said seat member and said base member can rotate with respect to each other, and without restriction, under the influence of moments of force applied to said seat member and said backrest member by a person in moving to a reclining position in said structure; rear floor support means, for said seat member, mounted to said seat member, but not to said backrest member, to permit rearward movement of said backrest member; and means for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest member prior to reaching a point of instability of the structure.
 2. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said base and backrest member and said seat member are each formed by a plurality of elements, and each of said plurality of elements carries support means for an occupant of said structure.
 3. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said base and backrest member are made as a unitary member.
 4. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein each of said base and backrest members comprise a framework of elements selected from the group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.
 5. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member comprises a framework of elements selected from a group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.
 6. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies between about 95* and about 135*.
 7. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies optimally between about 105* and about 120*.
 8. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said radius of curvature lies between about 4 cm. and about 12 cm.
 9. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said rear floor support means.
 10. The reclining structure of claim 9 wherein said rearwardly extending portion is formed by a pair of arm rests and a roller means affixed between said arm rests, engaging with said floor.
 11. The reclining structure of claim 1 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said rear floor support means, a point of intersection between said rearwardly extending portion of said seat member and said backrest member being thereby formed, as viewed in side elevation, said point of intersection always lying between floor supports, as viewed in side elevation, regardless of the position of reclinement of said structure.
 12. Reclining seating means, which includes: a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted for contact with the floor in the normal unreclined position of said seating means; a bacKrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, the angle formed between said base member and said backrest member being about 95* and about 135*, and the angle of curvature between said base member and said backrest member permitting a smooth pivoting action at the juncture of said base and backrest member to occur; a seat member mounted near said frontal end of said base member but not to said backrest member whereby said backrest member moves, pivotally, about said juncture of said base and backrest member under the moments of force applied to said seating means by a person moving to a reclining position therein, said seat member being provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form thereby a stable positioning of said seating means on said floor while permitting said pivoting action about said juncture of said base and backrest members to occur, said substantial elongated portion of said base member adapted for contact with the floor in the normal, unreclined, position of said seating means being at least 25 percent of the depth of said seat member for stability of said seating means in said normal, unreclined position; and means for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest member prior to reaching a point of instability.
 13. A reclining seating member, which includes: a base member having a frontal end and a rear end, a substantial portion of said base member being elongated and adapted for elongated contact with the floor; a backrest member fixedly mounted to the rear of said base member and curved upwardly and rearwardly therefrom to form a backrest for said chair, the angle and radius of curvature between said base member and said backrest member being such as to allow a smooth pivoting action at the juncture of said base and backrest members to occur, a seat member pivotally mounted near said frontal end of said base member but not to said backrest member, said pivotal mounting permitting unrestricted rotational movement, whereby said backrest member moves relatively independently of said seat member, and pivots about said juncture of said base and backrest members, under the moments of force applied to said seating means by a person moving to a reclining position therein; means for stably positioning said seating means on said floor while permitting said unrestricted pivoting action about said juncture of said base and backrest members to occur; and means, independent of said pivotal mounting, for limiting the rearward movement of said backrest prior to reaching a point of instability.
 14. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said base and backrest member and said seat member are each formed by a plurality of elements, and each of said plurality of elements carries support means for an occupant of said structure.
 15. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said base and backrest member are made as a unitary member.
 16. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein each of said base and backrest members comprise a framework of elements selected from the group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.
 17. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said seat member comprises a framework of elements selected from a group of materials consisting of wood, metal or plastic.
 18. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said angle between said base member and said backrest member lies optimally between about 105* and about 120*.
 19. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said radius of curvature lies between about 4 cm. and about 12 cm.
 20. The reclining structure of claim 13 wherein said seat member is provided with a rearwardly extending portion extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom to the floor to form said means for stably positioning said structure on said floor.
 21. The reclining struCture of claim 20 wherein said rearwardly extending portion is formed by a pair of arm rests and said means for stably positioning said structure on said floor is a roller means affixed between said arm rests, engaging with said floor. 